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We are delighted to welcome the Great Tapestry of Scotland to Stirling Castle as part of its national tour. It is officially the largest embroidered tapestry in the world and tells the story of Scotland’s history.

Four Scottish houses selected by Historic Scotland are to feature in the ITV series Britain’s Secret Homes. Traquair House in the Borders, Mousa Broch in Shetland, Rock House in Edinburgh and Knap of Howar in Orkney will all appear in the series, which examines 50 of the UK’s most interesting houses. The Scottish properties were chosen from a selection put forward by Elly McCrone, Head of Listing and Designed Landscapes at Historic Scotland.

Presented by award-winning broadcasters, Michael Buerk and Bettany Hughes, the five-part series – which airs on Fridays at 9pm – features properties put forward by Historic Scotland, English Heritage, Cadw, the Welsh Government’s historic environment service, and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. Experts from each organisation debated the order of the list, considering factors including each home’s national importance, cultural significance, historical value and beauty.

The series gives the background behind 50 of the UK’s most interesting homes; from council houses to country manors, bungalows to palaces. Each house helps to tell the story about how we once lived, offering accounts of conspiracy, romance and political intrigue. The history of each property is brought to life using archive footage, CGI and dramatic reconstruction.

Elly McCrone, the Historic Scotland expert who put forward a number of Scottish properties for consideration said: “From an Iron Age broch to Scotland’s oldest inhabited house, this exciting series examines some of Scotland’s most interesting homes. Spanning thousands of years, it investigates the unique relationship people have with the spaces they live in, and the ways in which that relationship has evolved over the centuries. Britain’s Secret Homes serves to highlight the breadth of fascinating historic homes in Scotland and the rest of the UK.”

The third episode of Britain’s Secret Homes airs on Friday 21 June at 9pm on ITV.

Images of the ITV team filming at Mousa Broch are available on request.

Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with safeguarding the nation’s historic environment. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament.

2013 is the Year of Natural Scotland, inspiring our people and our visitors to celebrate Scotland’s outstanding natural beauty, landscapes and biodiversity as Scotland prepares to welcome the world in 2014 and beyond. Find out more about Scotland’s outstanding natural beauty at www.visitscotland.com/natural